Movie Night
by sabra jaguar
Summary: In which Peter Parker does the super-hero-ing, Iris makes comparisons, and Barry wonders if she realizes how close to the truth she is... Barry/Iris friendship


Author's note: I don't know about anyone else, but after the intensity of the last few episodes, I needed some cutesy fluff, and this is my contribution to that cause. :) Thanks to frangipani blossom, whose story Take It Off gave me the push to post this story. If you haven't read it, you really should! I'd definitely recommend it.

Disclaimer: Not mine! Neither DC nor Marvel characters were harmed in the making of this story... and all mistakes are my own. Any constructive criticism is welcome.

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Barry Allen settled a little further in his seat on the couch in Joe's living room, waiting until Iris finished with the popcorn to start the movie, tempted to sprawl out the length of the couch since Joe had already turned in for the evening. Right now Barry was all for relaxation. He had the evening off with no metahumans to chase after, and was perfectly content to watch Peter Parker do the superhero-ing for the next two hours. "Hey, you want me to help you with that?" he called out towards the kitchen.

"Nope," Iris West laughed. "If I let you carry the popcorn, most of it will be gone before you make it out of the kitchen. I want it to last at least until the title credits are over, mister!" She came in the room burdened with two large bowls of popcorn, one of which she plopped down on Barry's lap and the other she set in between them. "And no starting in on this one until yours is finished," she warned him playfully, her hands blocking his from stealing from the bowl beside her. "Maybe this way I'll get a little bit before you eat it all. Really, Barry, how do you manage to finish it off so fast?"

He shrugged modestly before leaning over to steal a few kernels from the bowl Iris guarded, dropping them quickly when she swatted his hand. "Okay, okay!" he laughed, curling his hands around the bowl in his lap instead. "You're not going to call the Flash to come take me in for popcorn theft, are you?"

She pursed her lips in mock consideration, then smiled and shook her head. "You're in luck, my Flash signal will not be in service for the rest of the night. Now, are you going to put on the movie?"

This was one of the last nights Iris had to spend at home before she moved out to live with her boyfriend Eddie, and she wanted to spend some time with her two other favorite guys before she left. Her dad had made all her favorites for dinner, and she and Barry decided they'd rather stay in for a movie night and just enjoy each other's company, instead of enduring the craziness of going out to see one in the theater. Barry could understand not wanting to go out, wanting to spend every moment possible at home. Things might still be a little awkward between him and Iris after his confession to her, but he knew Iris and recognized every longing look she cast at things she hadn't realized were important to her until that moment, remembering the same feelings himself when he moved away to start his "adult" life. He caught her staring bright-eyed at the dings and dents the house had accumulated during their childhood, saw her trailing fingers over particularly memorable ones with a fond smile on her face as she remembered how they'd gotten there... mostly by means that had gotten them both in trouble at the time. Maybe Iris wasn't moving halfway across the country, could come back any time she wanted, but it was still change, and in a year filled with change, Barry understood wanting to keep things the same for just a little bit longer. He was determined to make sure Iris spent more time enjoying her time at home tonight, than dwelling too much on the past.

Barry tossed a handful of popcorn into his mouth, glancing over at Iris as he did, and caught her staring at him thoughtfully. "What?" he asked.

"It's just that…" she shook her head with a sheepish smile. "No, it's just silly."

He grinned at her. "Hey, you sat through all my usual rants about the the comics versus the movie and the changes they made to the characters, and then you let me go on about the insane science they used in the story. I think you're entitled to a rant of your own. Go on, I won't judge."

"No, it's not anything like that. It's just this thought popped in my head about you, and…you could almost be Spiderman." She laughed at the idea. "I told you it was silly."

Barry nearly choked on his popcorn. "How-what makes you say that?" he asked, with a small, nervous laugh of his own.

"Wellll…" she held up a hand, ticking off each point on her fingers, "you and Peter Parker are both sweet, geeky guys who are into science, you both do investigative type work…"

"Hey, he works for a newspaper, that's more along the lines of what you do with your blog," Barry protested, but Iris wasn't finished with her own list.

"And you both fight crime," she added triumphantly.

"I what? Iris, I don't go around in a spider costume and shoot webs at people!" Barry squirmed in his seat, his face reddening as he prayed her imagination didn't tie him to a Flash costume and the ability to run rings around people.

"I know that!" She giggled at the thought. Her tone softened as she said seriously, "but what you do is just as important as going out and physically catching the bad guys. Your work makes sure the right person is brought to justice. You have just as much a role in keeping this city safe as my dad, and Eddie, and even the Flash have, just in a different way. Don't ever think differently, okay, Bear?"

She patted his arm affectionately before gathering up the two empty bowls to return them to the kitchen. Barry sighed as he watched her go, turning back to the movie to watch Peter Parker pining over Mary Jane Watson. He mentally added one more item to Iris's list of similarities between himself and the fictional hero.

"Guess guys like us don't get the girl, even in the movies…huh, Pete?"

The longing look in the fictional hero's eyes was all the answer he needed.


End file.
